British Gliding Association (BGA) RAF Laarbruch

In the spring of 1987 I retired from the US Army at Kaiserslautern, Germany. I was fortunate enough to land a job running the data center for the US Army in Rheinberg, not far from Weese. That summer I learned about the Gliding Club at RAF Laarbruch. I was instantly hooked and wanted to learn to fly gliders. It seemed like I was out at the airfield every free weekend throughout the summer, fall, winter and spring until about April 1990 when the Rheinberg community shut down. I'm sure all will remember when the wall came down in Berlin in late 1989. I guess that was the beginning of the end for the large number of Allied Forces in Germany.

I'd like to express my thanks to John Sullivan, the CFI of the club and the many other flying instructors who tolerated my questions and ignorance of flying. Also I'd like to thank the wives and ladies of the club who managed to provide a delicious breakfast or tasty sarni whenever our energy slacked after pushing and pulling gliders around the airfield. The club bus/kitchen was our refuge on the airfield. If anyone remembers or knows John or any other members of the club between July 1987 and April 1990, I would very much enjoy hearing from them.

All in all, the three years I spent learning to fly and flying with the Two Rivers Gliding Club are some of the most memorable times of my life. I'll try and find some pictures and other memorabilia from those days and post them here in the future.

Mike Sabine

Welcome good buddy from the U S of A enjoy the site even more enjoy the food

Thanks for the welcome John Boy. As a matter of fact, on occasion, I did enjoy some good British breakfasts at the Airmen's dining facility on RAF Laarbruch. Stewed tomatoes for breakfast was something new to me at the time but I did enjoy it .